1. Field of the Invention:
This invention relates to food products and more particularly to a high fiber content white bread.
2. Summary of the Prior Art:
Whole wheat is one of nature's better foods for it possesses vitamins, protein, minerals, fats and carbohydrates in proportions that are remarkably well-balanced with a respect to many of man's nutritional needs. If we analyze all of the components of wheat and the factors affecting their utilization, we see the vast potential for bread as virtually an all-inclusive carrier of nutrients. This situation is technologically and sociologically favourable. In terms of economics, it is fundamentally sound, because wheat is among the best of all the cereal grains, and it can be grown in amounts far in excess of that now being produced.
However, a very strong consumer preference has developed for plain white bread. This bread can be made only with the flour milled from that which has up to 30% of the whole grain removed. This has had the effect of removing large amounts of protein as well as various vitamin and mineral constituents. These can be very successfully replenished in a white bread by adding additional protein, vitamin and mineral sources to the bread mix.
Another one of the important ingredients missing from plain white bread, which is present in whole wheat bread, is natural fibers. These natural fibers are biologically active and are highly desirable in foods, serving an important function in human digestion. For instance, they are an important aid to regularity and may be helpful in preventing functional problems associated with the gall bladder, e.g. assist in bringing down the bile acids.
Since white bread can be "enriched" by the addition of sources of missing protein, vitamins and minerals, it would seem obvious that it should also be possible to enrich white bread by the addition of natural fibers. However, the problem is that natural fibers tend to be dark in colour so that these fibers are clearly visible in white bread, giving the appearance of being impurities rather than an integral part of the bread formulation.
Various non-nutritive substances such as cellulose, seed coats, etc., have been used in bread formulations as a portion of the flour. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 3,573,061, issued Mar. 30, 1971, describes a modified seed coat flour used in the production of a low calorie flour. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,767,423 there is described a flour portion comprised of rice hulls and bean hulls, again for making a low calorie bread. Of course, in being ground to make flour, these seed coats are reduced to a very small particle size of typically about 5 to 25 microns in diameter.
Another non-assimilated carbohydrate material being used in bread is alphacellulose or microcrystalline cellulose. Such a product is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,023,104 and is sold under the trademark Avicel by the F.M.C. Corporation. This product is now being used commercially in fiber form to produce a so-called high fiber bread. While these purified cellulose materials have the commercial advantage of not interfering with the normal bread making procedure, it is much less certain that they are advantageous to the consumer. They are derived from wood, which is not a traditional food for humans, and recent studies have shown the presence of ingested microcrystalline cellulose fiber in the bloodstream of humans. It is, therefore, by no means certain that these purified cellulose products are a safe additive for baked products, particularly when they are used in large amounts.
It is therefore, the object of the present invention to provide a high fiber white bread in which the fiber content will be both biologically active and compatible in appearance with a baked white bread.